[panks15]

GTO thanks for the great review (absolutely professional and better than many auto magazines)

BUT, somehow I feel the review which started with all praises for GP had turned to spoil the cars image. My view on the issues is:

Interior trims and beadings: I would like to blame fiat for this, they have given such a stunning car which is difficult to find fault with, but critics are critcs so fiat gave them the reason to complain by providing the sub standard interior trim. For some it is important to look good though it may last or not (eg maruti swift with 500 kms on odo but rattles creaping in the car)

Big turning radius is a issue because I have seen people turning their big cars on the lane which is not barely wide enough for 2 cars to pass comfortably. They would take the u turn as per there wish may be to save time or save fuel and then they find themselves stuck in a situation where they keep moving there cars front and back and thus creating jams and queue of vehicles.

I had a bad experience with palio servicing, and that’s the only reason stopping me to go ahead and book the GP. Just waiting for some ownership reviews about servicing.

Thanks for the good work and all the best.

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GTO thanks for the great review (absolutely professional and better than many auto magazines)

BUT, somehow I feel the review which started with all praises for GP has turned to spoil the cars image. I had a bad experience with palio servicing, and thats the only reason stopping me to go ahead and book the GP. Just awaiting some ownership reviews about servicing.

The two majors issues are interior trim and big turning radius which can be easily overlooked considering the overall product.

Thanks for the good work and all the best.

[arun1100]

Guys have you noticed the space available to put your fingers while opening the dicky?? Its ridiculous to see the so little space given. I found it very difficult to open considering the weight of the dicky. May be the space was reduced while cutting down the length of the car.

[garvit2002]

i read somwhere that the service interval of punto is 15000kms and the oil change is required after 30000kms!!! tell me if it is true for the MJD

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by garvit2002

i read somwhere that the service interval of punto is 15000kms and the oil change is required after 30000kms!!! tell me if it is true for the MJD

Yes its true. Fiat has used synthetic oil in the Grande Punto. So the oil change is required only after 30000 kms

[amulu10]

Originally Posted by GTO

1. We have an accurate search mechanism on the forum. It's free to use (no registration required).

2. All new cars will eventually find their way to our official Test Drive section.

Oh god how could i have missed such a huge link at the top! anyways GTO thanks for pointing it out! the test drives section is awesome .Its so well put up and its exactly what i had in mind! Its a real boon for newbie buyers like me!

[grvanand]

Nice review GTO, covered most aspects brilliantly.

Had a drive with 1.4 petrol model today from Concorde motors, Mysore road. I found the response from the staff highly disinterested and the attitude poor, they really don't deserve to sell such brilliant cars like Punto and Linea. Made me wait for the drive for more than 45 minutes with the reason that the person to approve the drive was not available and they didn't know when he would be back.

Coming to the car though, the exteriors looked brilliant as everyone here have observed, however I too did find the space made to open the boot very less and uncomfortable like arun1100 has mentioned.

The design of the interiors are as good as the exterior styling but the quality of materials used are downgrade cheap. Space wise I felt it matched my Palio, better seats and equipment for sure, but definitely not the quality of plastics. Except for the blowers in the Palio, everything else feels built to last, heck even my Zen felt better in quality of plastics compared to this car.

Engine wise, it felt adequate, nowhere near Palio 1.6 at any of its power band or in any gears but comparable to other cars in the segment I have driven. Ride and handling though is leagues ahead. Like GTO mentioned, this car is worth buying only for its ride and handling if not anything else.

Things such as driving position, clutch play are typical Fiat, I did not face any issues at all. Dead pedal though is a little too close, but certainly not a deal breaker. I compared the interiors to the Linea present at the showroom, the only difference between the two are lack of hand rests, blower at the rear and replacement of all the beige coloured panels with grey.

A quick summary, the deal makers for this car imo are its styling, equipment, ride, handling, steering and the big one, PRICE. The possible deal breakers are dealer attitude and quality of interiors.

[extreme_torque]

Originally Posted by ada

Punto -- For the enthusiasts, for the young crowd, who goes out to picnic, visit Matheran or Parwanoo almost every month, ready to take some risks. Risks on quality of the car (Still to early to say if there are no niggling problems), risk on fiats ***, and for those madly in love with all things Italian.

uh oh nice.... so how old is Ritz in the market and which engine does it run on?? Ritz isnt the quality benchmark in its segment infact Maruti's are often blasted for their flimsy build in this very forum.

[Ravveendrra]

Originally Posted by carfreak

I am afraid thats true for almost all Fiats but i have read and there is a mention in some other thread too, that the pcd of the grande punto is 100!!i just wanted to confirm on the indian version too, whether its the same!!

Anyway guess it has to be discussed in another thread!!

Since we are on that topic - the PCD of the Linea is 98. I therefore think it is safe to presume that the GP too has 98 PCD.

Cheers,

[khanak]

Zigwheels did a pretty good job reviewing the Punto. I was pretty impressed with their cinematography.

YouTube - Fiat Grande Punto

Motorbeam (BUSA?) has also taken a couple of pictures in case anyone wants to have a look

Fiat Grande Punto Pictorial Review

Fiat Grande Punto Pictorial Review

[EssYouWe]

That was the dumbest review I have ever seen.

All he could figure out of the car was that the interiors were a lift-off the Linea.

He also said Fiat has forgotten how to tune engines. Guess he doesn't know much about emissions.

But the best part was when he said the Punto is a great family car and has oodles of space!

I am still waiting for a test drive, can anyone tell me which dealer is offering it in Delhi. Vivek and Him are not.

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by khanak

Zigwheels did a pretty good job reviewing the Punto. I was pretty impressed with their cinematography.

Zigwheels says Diesel engine is not fine tuned.
I think they have not understood that Punto MJD is tuned for Linear pick up design

That looks like a desperate attempt to justify a confused decision. Sure good, if it can instill confidence.

I feel that Ritz is the latest folly from Maruti after the Versa and the Estilo. Ritz is a confused car and it cannot be compared to the likes of Punto.

Also, peace of mind comes with a proven car which Ritz is yet not.

Originally Posted by ada

3) Ritz -- For the more mature, for someone like me who likes peace of mind. For the city dweller who very infrequently goes out (once or twice a year) hence boot space not so much of a problem.

[sbhasin]

The way I see it, Jazz wins over Punto in the following departments >>
--------------------------------------------------------------------
1) Fit and Finish
2) Engine and Power
3) Interior Space
4) Ergonomics
5) The gear box and the clutch
6) Ease of driving - turning radius
7) Maintenance and Service
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I feel the above areas are most important for car owners and Fiat should not have stumbled on these points! It will sell, thanks to the price point but I am not sure of long-term satisfaction.

[~~VinZ~~]

Great review, thanks GTO. It did make my decision easier

Has anyone got a glance on the black punto? i would not find much pictures of a black muscle.

I would like to compare between the black and red beauty as i am confuse which one to go for myself. I was sure myself to go for 1.4 Emotion pack but after reading through all the reviews and comments i am more interested in MJD now. The fact that most are interested in MJD and not FIRE, because of FE or performance?

[cruiser_1982]

Originally Posted by sbhasin

The way I see it, Jazz wins over Punto in the following departments >>
--------------------------------------------------------------------
1) Fit and Finish - Definitely Jazz wins
2) Engine and Power - Against Punto 1.2, yes. Definitely not against 1.4 FIRE on paper, but Jazz will have the edge on the FE. Have you driven both the cars BTW?
3) Interior Space - Definitely JAZZ wins
4) Ergonomics - This is much debatable. Ergonomics of JAZZ is targeted at overall comfort. Punto's ergonomics is targeted at making the driver comfortable. Punto is more of a driver's car and Jazz is more of a family car.
5) The gear box and the clutch- Honda's gear box has always been light and slots nicely in each gear, but I alsos have a feeling that they are fragile . The Punto's or in general Fiat's gear box is rubbery and needs some effort to slot into a gear when compared to all Honda cars, but I get a feel of rigidity/robustness in it. This is just my opinion.
6) Ease of driving - turning radius - Definitely Jazz wins.
7) Maintenance and Service - Definitely Honda doesn't give a better service (Their service centres are notorious) and the Honda's legendary quality is more of a myth than reality in current models of Honda in India. But still Honda is ahead of Fiat in reliability.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

I am no Honda hater or FIAT lover. I myself own a OHC 1.5